Tuesday, November 27, 2012

OK, I’ve been meaning to post about this little tip for months and months and just…I don’t know…didn't. And then a friend told me about the rug sale at Rugs USA yesterday (75 percent off people! GO. After you read this post!) and I found two rugs (crossing fingers they work) for hecka cheap, and then another friend mentioned she was bummed she couldn’t find any runners that were the right size for her space.

So THEN I told her about this little tip and realized I need to just post about it and share it with you all!

So say you have an awkward space, like our foyer that I showed you last week:

I know it doesn’t look awkward, but I’ve ALWAYs struggled with the right size rug for this spot. Before we had the buffet piece in there, it wasn’t as hard. But after, when I wanted something long and skinny, but not too long, that’s when it got harder. A 4 x 6 rug would have to go under the buffet which looked odd to me, a 3 x 5 just kind of floated around and looked weird, and a regular runner (about 2 1/2 by 8 feet) was too long.

We can’t have a rug up by the door because there's not enough clearance under it – by the way – if you are looking for a rug for an exterior door, make sure to check that. In my decorating days many a client would have to send back beautiful rugs they had searched for for weeks because the door wouldn't clear it. (Interior doors can be cut down pretty easily so it’s not as big of an issue there.)

So anyhoo, last year we needed a new rug for the foyer, and my long, arduous search began again. I finally found a runner I liked at Burlington Coat Factory:

It was too long though, so I decided to try out a little trick I had learned long ago.

Did you know you can have rugs cut down and binded to fit your space?:

Mine was eight feet, so I had two feet cut off and the one edge binded. I took mine to a local carpet store to do it. It’s been so long I can’t remember what the cost was, I think $30? My rug was a steal so it was worth it to me to do.

And I’ve seen that you can do this on your own, but I’ve never attempted it. If you have, let us know!

Only thing is you need to be specific with the carpet folks about the kind of binding you want. They did mine so that the “new” end looks different than the other:

I was going to take it back but then later decided it’s not a big deal. No one but me notices it. And you know if they did…THEY’D GET A COOKIE.

I think it’s cheaper to have it done another way, where they kind of use the fabric stuff to close off the rough edge, instead of the thick thread. I know that probably doesn’t make sense, but look at some of your rugs and you’ll see what I mean.

Or not. ;)

So anyway, be specific about how you want it to look. I wasn’t.

But now we can open our door and have a spot to wipe our shoes – both good things:

The other great thing about this is that you can pick up carpet remnants from store and have them bound as well – so if you need a huge rug and don’t want to spend $1,000 and up, check out the remnants and have them bound! (Remnants are usually a fraction of the price of the carpet off the roll.) This is also great when you need an odd sized rug – say 10 by 14 or something like that.

Awesome eh?? I like it, I do.

Just do a web search for carpet stores or carpet binding near you and I’m betting something will come up.

I think picking out a rug is just about one of the hardest decor decisions to make – it’s usually an investment, it is a BIG statement in the room so it has to be the right color/design and it can be hard to figure out the right size.

Rugs USA has extended their 75 percent off sale by the way – check it out here. My charcoal rug in the family room is available here too! And no, I’m not being paid to tell you this, it’s just an AWESOME sale. :)

Not only can you have remnants bound, you can have also have them pieced. So, for example, a beige remnant can have a colorful border (what is with all the beige carpet anyway--don't people like color?). Try mixing up the textures too.

You can do the piecing yourself, but try haggling a bit and they might discount it for you. They did the piecework at a drastically reduced price when I paid for the rugs to be bound.

I recently redecorated my home office and bought a rug that was perfect for the space except for one weird wall that protruded into the room from the staircase by about 6". So I actually cut the rug around it to fit by cutting out a square about 7" x 7". (If I ever use the rug elsewhere, I'll put furniture over that spot.) Then I ordered a product I found online called "Instabind." You DIY the binding yourself using hot glue. Life got in the way and I still haven't bound the little chunk I cut out of the rug but it looks pretty easy. Here's a link: http://www.bondproducts.com/instabind/. The only downside is that there are limited colors.

You're so right, having a rug bound to the right size is SO MUCH easier than searching forever for the perfect size, color, etc. When my family moved into our house (back in 1988) my mother bought remnants for the whole house and my brother and I helped her bind them. Evidently it wasn't too difficult because I was 8 years old at the time! The DIY binding held up beautifully and we had the rugs until I was in college. Now that I think about it, that was probably my first major DIY project :-)

I did something similar with amazing results.I have an odd space in my family room. The hearth runs at an angle and I picked a conversation (curved) sofa. Virtually no size of rug would fit in the awkward space. I happened to have my basement re-carpeted a while back and had several large remnants left. I used a piece of carpet pad to make a template, took all of my scraps to the local furniture/carpet store, they sewed them together and bound them for $90! They charge $1.50 per foot for binding and I think $3 per foot for seaming. Now I have a huge custom rug for $90. I then cut six inches off of the outside my carpet pad template and placed it underneath. It makes it soooo soft. People ask me all the time if I had my carpet inlaid in my hardwood floor. AMAZING!

Great tip about binding the rug, it looks terrific! And special thanks for letting me know about the sale at Rugs USA. I've been looking a long time for a rug for our living room and found the perfect one there at 75% off! Merry Christmas to me!

Michelle had the right idea about putting pieces together to create a custom rug. When I was in high school, my friend's dad owned a carpet store and he gave us a bunch of carpet sample squares. We sewed them all together with carpet thread and created a one-of-a-kind rug for our youth Sunday School classroom. Then we got rid of all the folding chairs and brought in bean bag chairs, floor pillows and throw pillows. We were super cool in the '70s!

I ordered my first rug from Rugs Usa on their Black Friday 75% off sale. I can't wait to get it. I hope it's as good as it looks in the picture. Thanks for the tip about binding. We have a carpet store in the area that would probably do that. I too have an odd area that a runner is too long. Perhaps now I will get one and have it cut to size and bound. Thanks for the tip.

That is an AWESOME tip, Sarah! I've looked for years for a rug to go in my kitchen, but can't find the proper size... thanks for giving me food for thought!xo HeidiPS -- I hit the RUGS USA sale last week and scored a sisal rug for next to NOTHING! Woo hoo!

We did the same thing years ago when we first built our home. I needed a large area rug for the dining room to go under our table and over the hardwood floors. The prices of those sizes really freaked me out!

I went to a discount carpet place and bought a remnant that I liked (great price too), and then had them bind it to my dimensions. It worked perfectly! I even used carpet padding underneath so it won't scratch the hardwood floors. It's going on 12 years now & still looks great. I won't replace it till the last of my 5 kids are in college (6 more years).

I made my own runner with a carpet remnant and some binding tape that I got at Walmart. It's kinda hard to find now, but it's SUPER cheap. (couple bucks for 6ft) It works by ironing the tape to the back and then folding it over the edge of the carpet to the front and ironing that. Have to watch the rug though, it melts if you don't put a cloth over it while ironing. It's not the best for high traffic, but if it peels off, you just iron it back on.

I bought a rug for my livingroom during the Rugs USA sale...then, reading your blog today I realized it's the exact same rug as your charcol rug....I like it even more now because of how much I like the look of your rug in the pictures!!

Have a very merry Christmas. Love your blog. My husband and I are starting Dave Ramsey this month!!

Great tip! When I moved to an apartment on the 1st floor of an 1800s house, there was a big almost, but not quite square room. I found a remnant of indoor/outdoor carpet at a discount carpet store, had it cut and bound for about $100. Now in my own home, it's used in the basement where the teenager and friends used to gather!

Thank you so much for sharing the rug sale! I have been searching for months for an inexpensive rug that will work in the nursery of my first baby girl. Yay, I got one! I did have to put on my big girl pants and realize that I should still not buy the charcoal rug you have. While it is a super deal, we need to be watching our spending right now. Sniff. Well, at least getting the other rug makes me feel better. Thanks!

OH MY GOSH!!! This is exactly what I needed to hear. I hate my kitchen floor and yes, I want to add a rug. But it is such a bizarre size, it has been hell trying to find a rug. I had this conversation recently with my cousin on whether or not you could have carpeting cut down and binded. My gosh, I am so stinking excited! Thanks!

I have bond carpet to make a rug, it is a great way to make a rug for a special sized area! I have also shortened an existing rug, by having them cut part off and match the binding! Very inexpensive alternative!

Thank you so much for sharing the tip about the remnants! We're going to put down wood floors and will need a rug and I've been concerned about the cost of some I see, but hopefully a carpet remnant will work for us.

Thanks so much sharing the rug sale. I snagged a beautiful 6" x 9" at the last possible moment saving me about about $400. Sweet!! I am going to have to have it cut and bound as it's a little to long, but I saved so much money I don't mind one bit! Thanks again!!

I just read this and wanted to let you know there is a much cheaper faster alternative. Instabond is a DIY rug binding found here https://www.bondproducts.com/instabind/ I also needed a short runner. I got the standard 8' on sale at a local rug shop & cut 9" off each end. Ordered Instabond rug binding at 1.25/ft & had a perfectly bound rug in under 2 hours for less than $12 inc. tax & S&H.

I have to say a huge thank you for your Rugs USA recommendation yesterday. I recently moved and have been trying to find affordable rugs and the 75% sale yesterday was a HUGE blessing. We bought two! Thank you!

Thanks for the great tip on Rugs USA. I have been following your blog for awhile now and have never commented before but wanted to says thanks for helping me find the perfect rug for my dining room. I don't have a blog of my own, just a follower and fellow Hoosier, approx. 2 hours North of you. Too cool!!! Have a great holiday season!Diane

Maybe someone has said this already, but you can pick out just about any carpeting in the carpet store and have it cut and bound into an area rug of any size. We've been picking out flooring for our new house and the salesman shared that with me.

My sister told me to get remnants and get them bound. It is a great solution.

I Googled "Rugs USA reviews" and saw really bad reviews for them. I don't know if they are really all from different people--sometimes you get somebody blasting a business. But the reviews are terrible for their customer service.

If you have a specific question, make sure I can answer you back by adding your email to your google/blog account! And be sure to check out the FAQs tab at the top of the site. Due to the number of emails I get, I just can't get back to everyone.